Respirators are commonly worn over a person's breathing passages for at least one of two common purposes: (1) to prevent impurities or contaminants from entering the wearer's respiratory system; and (2) to protect other persons or things from being exposed to pathogens and other contaminants exhaled by the wearer. In the first situation, the respirator is worn in an environment where the air contains particles that are harmful to the wearer, for example, in an auto body shop. In the second situation, the respirator is worn in an environment where there is risk of contamination to other persons or things, for example, in an operating room or clean room.
Respirators are regularly provided with a harness that includes one or more straps. These straps are commonly made of an elastomeric material such as a braided web or a Kraton rubber. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,465 to Xue, WO9831743 to Deeb et al., and WO9732493 A1 to Bryant et al. These straps typically are solid in appearance—that is, you cannot see through the strap, partially or totally. The solid nature of the known straps can add to overall product weight and increase heat retention on a wearer's neck. Additionally, conventional respirator straps are constructed such that the strap exhibits one color throughout. Both major strap surfaces therefore have the same appearance. As such it can be difficult to notice if the strap is twisted. The straps also are deprived of any opportunity to be aesthetically colorful or artistic by exhibiting more than one color or by exhibiting a generally plain solid appearance.
A variety of known respirators and their harnesses are shown in the following U.S. patents: RE39,493 to Yuschak et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,306 to Braun; U.S. Pat. No. 7,131,442 to Kronzer et al.; U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,923,182 and 6,041,782 to Angadjivand et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,619 to Dyrud et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,440 to Berg; U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,568,392 and 6,484,722 to Bostock et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,090 to Chen. See also U.S. Patent Application Nos. 2001/0067700 and 2010/0154805 to Duffy et al.; U.S. Design Pat. No. 659,821 to Spoo et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,521,630 to Westberg et al.; and Korean Patent No. 100467924.